YELLOW-BROWED WILLOW-WREN. 417 



had six feet of snow on the ground until the first of June. The sun was 

 burning hot; but it generally froze hard in the shade. Very few migratory 

 birds had arrived. The Snow-Buntings and the Mealy Redpoles (thick- 

 billed seed-eating birds), and the Hen-Harrier, the Peregrine Falcon, the 

 Merlin, and the Sparrow-Hawk (hook-billed Bunting- and Redpole-eatiug 

 birds) were almost the only representatives of the many summer visitors 

 which flock annually in coiiatless thousands to the tundra to breed. 

 Flocks of Geese and Swans had passed over, it is true, during the last half 

 of May whenever a thaw had commenced ; but the returning frost soon 

 drove them back again, and to all intents and purposes it was midwinter. 

 Summer, in league with the sun, had been fighting winter and the north 

 wind for months, but was hopelessly beaten, until, on the 2nd of June, she 

 formed an alliance with the south wind, and the great annual battle of the 

 Yenesay — the great event of the year in these regions, like the rising of the 

 Nile in Egypt — the battle between summer and winter began, and raged 

 for about a fortnight. The snow melted down south so rapidly, and the 

 great river rose so suddenly, that it began to flow up all its tributaries in 

 the north. The ice broke up suddenly ; thousands of acres were marched 

 up stream and then marched back again. Ice-floes were driven against 

 islands and promontories and piled up into broken masses, which froze 

 together and came down in the shape of icebergs when the river rose high 

 enough to float them. The brilliantly clear skies to which we had become 

 accustomed changed to stormy clouds, followed by drizzling rain and mist. 

 All nature seemed to share in the excitement. The revolution in the ice 

 took place to the accompaniment of a perfect babel of birds. Above our 

 heads we continually heard the gay gag of Geese and the harsh bark of 

 Swans, as flock after flock hurried past us to the tundra. Wherever there 

 was a little open water between the ice-floes and the pack-ice, crowds of 

 Gulls were fishing as if they had not had a meal for a week; and their 

 derisive laugh, as they quarrelled over their prey, seemed to mock our 

 misfortunes as we struggled to save our half- wrecked ship : whilst ever 

 and anon the wild weird cries of the Black- throated and Red-throated 

 Divers, like the distant scream of tortured children, came from the creek 

 opposite. Flocks of Ducks arrived ; and Bramblings and Shore-Larks 

 came in small parties. 



The next day White Wagtails and Wheatears were seen running on the 

 snow which covered the ice-floes ; and on the 4th the willows and birches 

 on the steep banks of the river, where the snow had melted, abounded with 

 Warblers, amongst which I foimd the Willow- Warbler, the Siberian 

 Chiffchafl', and the Yellow-browed Warbler. 



It was very difficult to get about in the melting snow ; but in the willows 

 on the steep bank of the river little birds were feeding, industriously 

 picking up insects on the naked brandies, and sometimes making little 



